Conventional dentures have prosthetic teeth shaped and colored to appear like natural teeth. The base of the denture is colored to match gingival or soft tissue, and is fixed upon a patient's gingiva by an adhesive. However, the denture may not adhere well to the patent's gum causing discomfort and malfunction of the denture as well as embarrassment to the patient when the denture slips out of the patient's mouth.
As such, endosseous implants may be used to anchor the denture to support multiple prosthetic teeth. The denture fits over implants, or shortened natural teeth if preserved, and is called an overdenture. The overdenture can also be used in cases where the mandible or maxilla of a patient has insufficient bone mass or strength to hold an implant for each tooth, or when a surgery for many implants is cost prohibitive or otherwise harmful to the patient
Endosseous dental implants are typically threaded or press-fit into pre-drilled bores in the mandible or maxilla to support one or more prosthetic teeth. A number of implants can be spaced along the mandible or maxillae and may be used to support a full or partial overdenture. A full denture with prosthetic teeth for an entire upper or lower jaw is usually anchored by two to four implants.